It appears I’m on a granola bar kick this week.
and I can’t be stopped.
But I didn’t think you’d mind too much?
Experimenting with granola bar recipes (and flavours) is one of my favourite things to do. It’s rare that I don’t have a bar tucked away in my purse for “emergencies”. You know, hangry attacks! Eric went so crazy for these bars he insisted I post the recipe on the blog RIGHT THIS SECOND so who am I to argue? I imagine that I’ll be making these a lot over the summer and stashing them in the freezer over the next several months. That’s if we can keep our paws off them for that long (unlikely, really).
Much like my Feel Good Hearty Granola Bars, these bars are also lower in sugar than most (5.8 grams per bar). This time I used just 1/4 cup of coconut nectar syrup which is a fruity-tasting low-glycemic sweetener. It doesn’t seem to give me sugar crashes like regular cane sugar does. Due to its fruity flavour, I don’t find it works in all recipes. For instance, it’s not my favourite sweetener in some chocolate recipes, but in granola or fruit-based recipes it tends to always blend in nicely.
The only caveat with this recipe is that the bars don’t hold together perfectly, so I recommend storing them in the fridge and not letting them sit at room temperature. Best to take one straight from the fridge and stuff it in the face! It’s a hard task, I know. They definitely aren’t “travel” bars (unless you don’t mind it turning into loose granola at room temp).
Oh and for the record, I did try baking a batch in the oven for curiosity’s sake and the no-bake version won by a landslide. The baked bars held together a teeny tiny bit better, but they tasted less sweet and a bit bland. I don’t think it’s worth the extra time or oven heat, personally.
Like most granola bar recipes, this one is versatile so be sure to let me know what flavours you come up with in the comment section. Think we can come up with 52 flavours, or what?
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No-Bake Almond Joy Granola Bars
Yield
14 small bars
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Chill time
10 minutes
Total time
Easy no-bake granola bars inspired by the popular Almond Joy Chocolate bar flavour. Roasted almond butter, mini chocolate chips, and coconut unite to create one tasty bar that's whipped up in 10 minutes (no oven required!). Recipe adapted from Yummy Mummy.
Ingredients
- 1.5 cups rolled oats (use certified gluten-free if necessary)
- 1 cup rice crisp cereal
- 1/2 cup sliced almonds
- 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1/2 cup roasted almond butter
- 1/4 cup coconut nectar syrup (or brown rice syrup - see note)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- pinch of fine grain sea salt or pink Himalayan salt, to taste
- 1.5 tablespoons non-dairy mini chocolate chips (such as Enjoy Life brand, optional)
Directions
- Line an 8-inch or 9-inch square pan with two pieces of parchment paper, one going each way so it's easy to lift out.
- In a large bowl, stir together the oats, rice crisp cereal, sliced almonds, coconut, and chia seeds.
- In a medium pot over low heat, melt the coconut oil. Remove from heat and stir in the almond butter, coconut nectar, and vanilla, until smooth.
- Pour wet mixture over dry and stir well until thoroughly combined. Add a pinch of salt to taste and stir again.
- Spoon mixture into the pan and roughly spread out (but don't pack down yet). Sprinkle on the chocolate chips in an even layer. Wet hands lightly and then press down the mixture until even. Use a pastry roller to roll it out and pack it in even more.
- Transfer pan to the freezer for about 10 minutes until firm. Slice into bars, wrap, and store in the fridge or freezer. These bars fall apart easily so I don't recommend leaving them at room temperature for longer than a few minutes.
Tip:
I do not recommend swapping the coconut nectar or brown rice syrup for any other liquid sweetener. Other sweeteners won't be sticky enough to bind the bars.
I just made your present glo bars and froze them over 10 min, but a minute later they started falling apart. I had to wrap each one in plastic wrap and press it together then put them all in the fridge. Did I do something wrong or is this normal? In your pics they look so solid! I couldn’t even pick one up. Help? They taste FANTASTIC though.
Hi Linda, I haven’t had any trouble with my glo bars falling apart. Did you make any changes to the recipe at all? The brown rice syrup is crucial in this recipe (no other sweeteners will bind properly – I’ve tried them all!). Otherwise, it could just be that you need to pack the glo bar mixture more firmly into the pan. I press it very firm and then roll it with a pastry roller. Hope this helps!
Well… I messed up then! I didn’t have brown rice syrup nor do I know what it is so I used maple syrup. I’ll have to go look for the rice syrup. I didn’t realize that was the glue for it all. Thanks!!!
Thank you for yet another amazing recipe, Angela! I made these with what I had in my cupboards: I used raw almond butter and hazelnutbutter half/half, and pepita’s, pistachio’s and almond flakes. We don’t have vegan chocolate chips here in Holland, so I cut up a chunk of dark chocolate instead. It worked really well, they did fall apart a little when they came to room temperature, but the crumbs are also really tasty!
PS: I am so happy your cookbook is now available through a Dutch seller, I got it two weeks ago, it looks beautiful and the recipes are great, I have been making a bunch of them already.
Absolutely scrumptious and so easy to make. I live on an island so not turning on the oven is an added bonus. These are now my new ‘go to’ granola bars. Thanks for sharing.
I made these the other day with agave nectar as opposed to coconut nectar and they were very crumbly. I used them as granola. Still yummy.
These are delicious! I used honey instead of coconut nectar and peanut butter instead of almond butter. The changes were simply because I lacked the other ingredients. I love them!
Hands down. Best granola bars I have ever had! I did not use the coconut nectar beause to me it’s too fruity. I used brown rice syrup. Amazing!!!!
This is one of the few recipes on this site that I haven’t completely loved.
Did not hold together like bars at all, even frozen. It was ok crumbled as a granola, but really didn’t taste like almond joys much. No one else in the house will eat it and it def. does not travel well; when the coconut oil becomes room temp it all just turns to oily dust.
Made these bars today for back to school treats. I just made them nut free by swapping the almond butter with NoNuts Golden Pea Butter and replaced the slivered almonds with Enjoy Life No Nuts! Seed and Fruit Mix. Super yummy!!!
Is coconut nectar stickier than brown rice syrup? I made these granola bars tonight with brown rice syrup and even while they were frozen, they completely fell apart. They’re still delicious, but I think I will use more brown rice syrup the next time I make them. I love the Glow Bars (and everything else) in your cookbook, btw! :)
Very good just wish the held together better
Hi, I was curious if raw honey would be an acceptable substitute for the coconut nectar syrup/rice syrup. I’m looking forward to trying your recipe. Thanks for sharing!
Sticky sweetener…help! Hi. I love in rural Zambia. As you can imagine, so many of the products that make veganism convenient aren’t available to me. Hey… I just found quinoa in Kenya last week and thought I had won the lottery!
I would like to try these bars. I’ve already decided I will have to sub the almond butter for peanut…almonds are difficult to find, usually of poor quality, and expensive. The sweeteners I can find are sugar in the raw, molasses, honey, and fruit pastes such as dates. Ideas? A mix? What can I do? Thanks for your help, getting a handle on the sweetener issue will actually help me with several recipes.
I used molasses instead of the nectar syrup and it worked great! Bars stayed together wonderfully and tasted great!
These bar are soo addictive and filling! I’m planning on making a batch for my running club-they will love them. Thank you for all your yummy recipes.
I found your wonderful blog while searching for energy and protein bars to make for my son to have with him in the army. The only protein he’s getting there is tuna, and he’d rather not be consuming tuna as he’s basically vegetarian. He’s a pretty lean guy, so I’m concerned about quality protein. These recipes are a live-saver!!
Question – I see you don’t recommend swapping the liquid sweetener, but didn’t mention Silan (date honey), which, I think would work just as well. I’m going to have to try it and let you know.
These are absolutely amazing! Best thing I’ve eaten in a long time!
I`m so excited to make these!
I will substitute the chocolate with goji berries, your blog is my favorite!:)
These are perfect for my kids’ lunchboxes (and me!) I swapped out the crisp rice for raw hulled buckwheat and used cacao butter instead because my husband hates coconut oil and I wanted him to try them : ) Thank you, Thank you, Thank you so very much!!!
Unfortunately mine did not stick together at all. :( I used brown rice syrup though – maybe next time I will use coconut nectar syrup. But I do now have delicious granola! Thank you for the recipe.
Angela-
These are so incredibly good! My family loves them. I do have to keep them in the fridge to keep them from falling apart. Is there any way to make a baked version of this bar that will stay whole in their lunch bags?